Rio+20 in June 2012 is a crucial conference for WEDO as an organization. It marks 20 years of WEDO’s leadership, advocacy and action for women’s rights and gender equality in the realm of sustainable development. WEDO founders and visionaries set us on a path toward Rio in 1991 that brought together an unprecedented number and diversity of women and initiated the framework for gender responsive sustainable development, which we draw upon in our work today. And here we are, 20 years on, blazing a new trail to Rio. Many concerns are the same, but the world is fundamentally different, and we are ready to not only respond to it but shape its future.
WEDO today still holds women’s rights as human rights, still facilitates increased decision-making and participation by women and still strives for a healthy planet. Today we are focused on rights, on justice, on ecosystem resilience, on the interlinkages between them. We are focused on women’s leadership and good global governance and their role in sustainable development. Rio+20 is a forum for WEDO to participate in convening women, to initiate discussion and develop recommendations, to push governments to comply with existing agreements, to influence national-level initiatives, and to create conditions for a new paradigm in development – one that has gender equality as a core and non-negotiable value.
On the Road to Rio+20, WEDO is leading efforts to ensure that women are represented and that gender equality is a substantive result. WEDO is working as part of the Women’s Major Group to draft a contribution to the compilation document due November 1. WEDO is also working on organizational efforts toward Rio+20.
WEDO will continue to advocate and fine-tune our messages and expectation in the coming months. Following are some concrete ideas that form our vision now:
–> Rio+20 negotiations and outcomes should be based on the human rights framework.
–> Sustainable development governance must be reformed and streamlined to coordinate implementation of commitments that enable sustainable and equitable economies, environmental justice, social equity and gender equality.
–>A new term/phrase such as green economy cannot be a substitute for sustainable development; it does not sufficiently address the linked pillars or gender equality.
–> Rio+20 is a time to revisit key agreements such as CEDAW, the Beijing Platform for Action, Rio Principles and Agenda 21, the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation, the MDGs, and require compliance and implementation.
–>It is time to consciously make the links between climate change, biodiversity, desertification (and their conventions), water, sanitation, waste, urbanization, migration, agriculture and women’s leadership and participation.
–>And to look past Rio, we want innovative policy that when implemented on the ground can impact lived realities as well as respond to women’s innovation, needs and abilities.
To get there:
–> WEDO will facilitate a pathway for women to lead the way toward sustainable economic future through action, leadership and participation in decision-making.
–> WEDO will advocate for measures and indicators that go ‘Beyond GDP’ to assess development without a singular focus on growth.
–> WEDO will propose Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to improve upon the MDGs, make the linkages and provide specific targets.
We hope you will join us on the Road to Rio+20.
